How to block pop-ups and annoying auto-play videos

To shut down autoplaying videos as well, go to the main Firefox menu (three lines in the top right), click on Settings, Privacy & Security, and ... Howtoblockpop-upsandannoyingauto-playvideos Restorethepeaceandquietinanywebbrowser. By DavidNield | UpdatedJul25,20217:00AM DIY Technology Keepthevolumedowninyourbrowser.DavidNield SHARE Thisstoryhasbeenupdated.ItwasoriginallypublishedonFebruary14,2018. Youfollowalinktoanarticle—andsuddenlyyourspeakersblare.Pop-upsappearonscreen,youaccidentallyrunyourmouseoveranadthatburstsintolife,andaninescapableautoplayvideofollowsyouasyouscrolldownthepage.Youhavetoshutupthesedistractionsbeforeyoucanactuallyseethecontentyouwant. Luckily,themostpopularwebbrowsershavesettingsthatwillhelpyousilencetheunwantednoise.Andiftheydon’tdothetrick,youcanemploythird-partyadd-onstotakecontrol.Here’showtorestorepeaceandquietinGoogleChrome,MozillaFirefox,Apple’sSafari,andMicrosoftEdge. GoogleChrome Google’sbrowsercomeswithastrongfirstlineofdefense:theabilitytomutespecifictabs.Whenapagestartsplayingsound,alittlespeakericonwillappearonthatpage’stab,nexttothe“X”ontheright.Ifyouseethaticon,right-clickonthetabandchooseMuteSite.Thiswillimmediatelyshutupthepageandturnthenoisyiconintoasilentspeakerwithalinethroughit. Youcanalsousethisoptionasapreemptivestrike,mutingapagebeforeitbeginsmakingnoise.Onceyoudo,anypagesthatsharethesamedomain(suchaspopsci.com)willlaunchwiththemuteoptionturnedon.Tounmute,right-clickamutedtabandchooseUnmuteSite. Autoplay Toreallygetaheadofnoisyintrusions,you’llneedtopreventvideosfromautoplaying.Forseveralyears(sinceversion64),Chromehasautomaticallydisabledautoplayunlessthevideoismutedortheuserhasexpressedaspecificinterestinwatchingit. Despitethisprecaution,someautoplayvideosmightstillsneakontoyourscreen.Toblockthem,you’llhavetotweakChrome’ssettings.Unfortunately,there’snospecificsettingforautoplay,butthereisonethatwillstopallsitesfromplayingsound.Clickonthethreedotsintheupperrightcornerofyourbrowserwindow,hitSettings,Privacyandsecurity,SiteSettings,andscrolltothebottomtofindAdditionalcontentsettings.ClickthattoexpandthelistandclickonSound.Finally,selectthebubblenexttoDon’tallowsitestoplaysound.Withthisenabled,videosmaystillplay,butthey’llbesilent,andifyouwanttohearsoundon,say,YouTube,you’llhavetoright-clickthetabandselectUnmuteSite. Ifyoudon’twantvideostoplayatall(maybeyou’reworriedaboutoldembedsturningintocontentthat’snotsafeforwork),you’llhavetodownloadathird-partyChromeextensionlikeAutoplayStopperorDisableHTML5. Notifications Whenawebsitesendsyouanotification,Chromewilldisplayitonscreen.ThisletsappslikeGmail,whichrunontheweb,getintouchwithyou.Whilethisisagoodideaintheory,inpracticeitletsallsitesbotheryouwithinterruptionsandalerts.However,theywillaskforyourapprovalfirst. [Related:5GoogleChrometipsthatwillmakebrowsingeasier] Assitesrequesttosendyounotifications,youcandenythemindividually.Oryoucanautomaticallydenyallofthemandoptoutoftheserequestsentirely:GobackintoChrome’ssettings,findPrivacyandsecurity,openSiteSettings,andclickonNotifications.Thenusethebubblesatthetopofthepagetogenerallysethowsitescansendnotifications,andtheoptionslowerdowntofurthercustomizehowalertswork. Pop-ups Persistentpop-upwindowareapain.Tosuppressthem,startbyopeningChrome’ssettings.ClickPrivacyandsecurity,thenSiteSettings,followedbyPop-upsandredirects.Finally,clickthebubblenexttoDon’tallowsitestosendpop-upsoruseredirects. Shouldsomepop-upsstillgetthrough,enlistthehelpofathird-partyextension.TwoofthebestinthebusinessarePopUpBlockerforChromeanduBlocker.Bothfunctionsimilarly:theywillletyoubrowsesiteswithoutinterruptionandsendyounotificationswhentheysquishpop-ups. MozillaFirefox TosilencepagesinFirefox,findthetabplayingaudio(itwillsayPlaying)andmoveyourcursoroverittodisplayanaudioicon.Clickonthaticononce.Clickasecondtimetoallowaudiooncemore.Alternatively,youcanachievethesameresultbyright-clickingonthetabheaderandchoosingMuteTab. Autoplay Thatsolutionwillstoptabsfromsurprisingyouwithmusicandotherunexpectedsounds—butthevideosgeneratingthenoisewillcontinuetoplay.Toshutdownautoplayingvideosaswell,gotothemainFirefoxmenu(threelinesinthetopright),clickonSettings,Privacy&Security,andscrolldowntoPermissions.FindAutoplayandclicktheSettingsbuttontoitsright.Finally,chooseBlockAudioandVideofromthedropdownmenuatthetopofthedialogbox. Notifications LikeChrome,Firefoxletssitespepperyouwithalerts—afteraskingifyouwanttoalloworblocknotificationsforeachsite.Youcanalsochangeyourmindaboutthesepermissions.Torevokethemforspecificdomains,opentheFirefoxmenulikeyoudidbefore,chooseSettingsfollowedbyPrivacy&Security.GodowntoPermissions,findNotifications,andclicktheSettingsbuttontoitsright.Thenextdialogboxletsyouseeandmanagethewebsitesthathaveaskedtosendyounotifications. Ifyouwanttoshutdowntheserequestsbeforetheyhappen,Firefoxletsyoudothattoo.Fromthesamenotificationssettingsdialogwindow,justchecktheboxatthebottomnexttoBlocknewrequestsaskingtoallownotifications. Pop-ups Firefoxcanshutdownmostpop-upwindowsforyou.Toblockthem,opentheFirefoxmenuandclickSettings,followedbyPrivacy&Security.FindthePermissionsheadingandticktheboxmarkedBlockpop-upwindows. IfsitesmanagetobypassFirefox’sbuilt-inprotection,downloadathird-partyadd-ontokeepalidonpop-ups.ThestraightforwardPopupBlockerUltimateshouldbeabletodealwithanypop-upsthatFirefoxmisses,andStrictPop-upBlocker,whichisevensimplertouse,won’tallowanykindofpop-upthrough. AppleSafari IfasiteplaysaudioinSafari,you’llseeaspeakericonappearintheaddressbar.Clicktheicontomutethecurrenttab,oruseOption+Clicktomuteallbackgroundtabs(thetabyouclickwillretainitscurrentstate:mutedorunmuted).Youcanusethesameactionsonthespeakericonsvisibleontheright-handsideofindividualtabs. Autoplay Todealwithautoplayingvideos,gotothemenubaratthetopofthescreen,clickSafari,andchoosePreferences,followedbyWebsites.ClickAuto-Play,scrolldowntoWhenvisitingotherwebsites,andchooseNeverAuto-Playfromthedropdownmenunexttoit.YouwillalsoseealistabovetheWhenvisitingotherwebsitesoption,whichyoucanedittoexcludecertainsitesfromthisblanketban. Youcanalsosetautoplayoptionsforspecificwebsites.Openasiteinyourbrowser,clicktheSafarimenu,andchooseSettingsforThisWebsite.Adialogboxwillappear,withadropdownmenunexttoAuto-Play.Usethistochoosebetweenallvideosplayingautomatically,novideosplayingautomatically,oronlymutedvideosplayingautomatically. Notifications Todisplaynotificationsandpushalerts,websitesmustaskyouforpermission.Youcanturnthemalldowninonefellswoop:OpentheSafarimenuandchoosePreferences,thenWebsites,andfinallyNotifications.Here,unticktheboxmarkedAllowwebsitestoaskforpermissiontosendnotifications.Inthesamemenu,Safarialsoletsyouchangethenotificationpermissionsforindividualsites. Pop-ups Safarishouldautomaticallydealwithmostoftheunwantedpop-upboxesthattrytoappear.Tomakesurepop-upblockingisactive,opentheSafarimenu,choosePreferences,clickWebsites,findPop-upWindows,andchooseBlockorBlockandNotifyfromthedropdownmenuinthebottomright. [Related:5advancedSafaritipstolevelupyourbrowsing] BecauseSafaridoesn’thaveasmanyextensionsasChromeandFirefoxdo,you’llfindfeweradd-onsfordealingwiththepop-upsthatSafarimisses.However,AdblockdoesworkwithSafari.Inadditiontoblockingpop-ups,itwillhelpyoumanageunwantedadsandotherdistractions—justremembertowhitelistyourfavoritesitessotheycanstillgetadrevenue. MicrosoftEdge Lastbutnotleast,inthebrowserbuiltintoWindows10,anaudioiconappearsontheheaderofanytabplayingsound.Youcanmutepagesbyeitherclickingthisiconorright-clickingthetabandselectingtheMutetabmenuoption. Autoplay IfallyourememberaboutMicrosoftbrowsersistheclunkyoldInternetExplorer,youmaybepleasantlysurprisedbyEdge.Ithasaddedmorefeaturessinceitsinitialrollout,includingtheabilitytolimitautoplayingvideos.ClickthemainEdgemenu(threedotsinthetopright),findSettings,Cookiesandsitepermissions,andMediaautoplay.Youhaveonlytwochoicesinthenextdropdownmenu:LimitandAllow.Limitingautoplaymeansvideosmaystillplaydependingonhowyou’veusedthepageinthepastandwhetheryou’veinteractedwithanymedia. Notifications Likeinotherbrowsers,sitesmustaskforpermissionbeforetheycanshownotificationsonyourscreen.Andifyou’vealreadygrantedaparticularsitepermission,youcanalwayschangeyourmind.Hitthemenubuttoninthetopright,clickSettings,andthenchooseCookiesandsitepermissions.ScrolldowntoNotificationsandturnthetoggleswitchoffnexttoAskbeforesending.Thiswillblockallnotifications.Youcanalsomanagewhichsitesyouwanttowhitelistandreceivenotificationsfrom. Pop-ups Edgealsohasanintegratedpop-upblocker.GobacktotheCookiesandsitepermissionsmenumentionedaboveandclickonPop-upsandredirects.Yourbrowserprobablyalreadyblocksthembydefault,butifthetoggleswitchnexttoBlockisoff,turniton. Ifyou’dliketobackupEdge’sbuilt-inpop-updefenses,you’relimitedbythefactthatyoungEdgedoesn’thavemanyadd-ons(youcanbrowsethroughtheexistingoneshere).OneofthefewyoumightconsiderisAdblock,whichwementionedintheSafarisection.Thiscanblockanypop-upsthatEdgecan’t,anditwillalsostopotherdistractingads—thoughyoushouldallowsitesyouwanttosupportthroughthefilter. DavidNield DavidNieldisafreelancecontributoratPopularScience,producinghowtoguidesandexplainersfortheDIYsectiononeverythingfromimprovingyoursmartphonephotostoboostingthesecurityofyourlaptop.Hedoesn'tgetmuchsparetime,butwhenhedoeshespendsitwatchingobscuremoviesandtakinglongwalksinthecountryside. advertisements browsers chrome DIY microsoftedge MORETOREAD RELATED Thebestinternetbrowsersyou’veneverheardof Takeafresherlookattheweb. READNOW RELATED Howtomanagewebnotificationsinanybrowser Reclaimyourfocus. RELATED YoushouldswitchtoabrowserthathasitsownVPN It'smorestraightforwardthanyou'dthink. Likescience,tech,andDIYprojects? SignuptoreceivePopularScience'semailsandgetthehighlights. LET'SGO